A Wednesday morning brush fire on the CSX railroad tracks in Barnesville, Maryland, shut down both CSX and Maryland Area Rail Commuter Brunswick Line traffic.

The MARC Brunswick Line runs on CSX-owned track from D.C. to West Virginia, with a branch to Frederick, Maryland, as well.

The fire was first reported on Twitter by Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service spokesperson Pete Piringer at 5:48 a.m. At first, the fire only affected CSX freight rail traffic, as MARC trains only begin operation at 5:45 a.m. each day.

By 6 a.m., rail traffic was shut down two miles in both directions between the MARC stations in Dickerson, and Boyds; the Barnesville station is in between the two.

The fire had been put out by 7:26 a.m., with no injuries reported. Mr. Piringer noted, however, that local wildlife would have to be relocated.

The rail shutdown was extended one station further to Germantown at about 7:35 a.m. so that fire crews could pack up and take their equipment with them. By 8:17 a.m., the shutdown had been lifted.

The National Weather Service issued a “Red Flag” warning at 9 a.m. until 8 p.m. for swathes of northern and central Maryland, northern Virginia, and eastern West Virginia, alerting residents to fire weather conditions.

A red flag warning “means that critical fire weather conditions are either occurring now, or will shortly. A combination of strong winds, low relative humidity, and warm temperatures can contribute to extreme fire behavior,” per the NWS.

• Brad Matthews can be reached at bmatthews@washingtontimes.com.